Pacific Northwest National Laboratory understands nuclear power and its many environmental, energy, and economic benefits. We apply and leverage our expertise, built over several decades, to help facilitate the design of new reactors, safely extend the lives of existing reactors, and develop processes for recycling, safe storage, transportation and disposal of used nuclear fuel. A combination of S&T expertise, a unique Hanford history, and highly equipped facilities - such as the Radiochemical Processing Laboratory, a Category 2 Nuclear Facility - allow us to bring substantial resources to helping solve the nation's nuclear energy challenges.

By serving the Department of Energy, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and the nuclear power industry, we ensure that our expertise and research assets are having tangible impact on U.S. energy security.

For the first time, researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and LCW Supercritical Technologies have created five grams of yellowcake — a powdered form of uranium used to produce fuel for nuclear power production — using acrylic fibers to extract it from seawater.

EA&E staff are addressing a broad set of environmental, and regulatory, and border-security projects involving the storage, detection, and safe disposition of our nation’s nuclear materials. From siting small nuclear reactors to detecting illicit materials at the U.S. borders, from responding to emergencies to safe disposition and storage of spent nuclear materials, EA&E staff are solving problems and leading our nation into a safer, cleaner future.